Red Broiler Chicks for Meat?

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GAchickennewbie

GAchickennewbie

Songster
5 Years
Apr 2, 2014
670
116
168
Northeast GA
I'm researching different breeds and have come across red broilers, aka red rangers according to some websites.

However, I'm a fan of personal experience over any article I find on the internet. I have also found a few vids of them and like what I see in regards to them having a "natural life" before they are processed.

Has anyone raised them? Do they make good meat birds? Would they have the same requirements as other broiler breeds? I.e.-fully feathered at 3 weeks, switched to finisher feed at 3-4 weeks, etc

What can people tell me about them? I'd only be raising 6 at a time.
 
I don't have experience with them, but assume that they are similar (in their grow out time, feed conversion, and foraging ability) to the Pioneer. (alias Dixie Rainbow) I grew 10 Pioneers last summer, and was very pleased with them. I held back one pullet from the freezer, and she's a very nice bird. She's a good layer, and I expect her to add some "beefiness" to my back yard flock.
 
Red Rangers make excellent Cornish X Rock alternatives. We only lost a few due to predation, and none developed leg issues during the time we had them. Even the hens dress out very nicely! Unlike the cornish crosses, they also took interest in foraging. Ours dressed out around 6-8 pounds, and can get larger if you let them. They are shaped a bit differently, they have more dark meat and less white meat than the cornish birds. I do recommend them to those looking for a good free range meat bird.
 
I have 25 red broilers from Ideal who are 2 weeks old now. I am seeing quite a bit of variance in coloring, feathering, and fleshing out even in this small of a group, which leads me to believe this is not an F1 of a breed cross, like the Cornish-Rocks I had previously.
 
Does anyone know what breeds the freedom Rangers (or the red Rangers) came from? I have spent hours on the computer trying to find this info with no luck. I would just like to know where to start to breed something similar of my own at home. I know you can't just breed red rangers to each other and get the same, can you? I really like the look of the dark cornish (Indian game) but I am concerned with their reproduction ability (I've read they have trouble breeding because of their build) Maybe cross the dark Cornish with something? Still can the rooster reproduce well enough (and then I have to figure out where to get them-I've read hatcheries are not the best place) any breeders near Greenville, SC???
 
I've had several small batches. We like them a lot and they have always been healthy, in fact, I've only lost one chick in about 4-5 batches. No leg issues and are good sized between 12-16 weeks but won't keel over dead if kept longer. I've had a couple hens who didn't get processed live for 2-3 years and lay huge,brown eggs. I did lose them in the heat of AZ sun but otherwise they did well. The chicks are much more heat tolerant than the Cornish X, it was the older hens that I lost.
 

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